Eritrean authorities on Sunday released 97 Egyptian fishermen who had been detained due to entering Eritrean territorial waters since January 12th.They were held for 100 days until formal negotiations succeeded in securing their release without any payment.
The release of the fishermen capped months-long diplomatic efforts by the foreign ministry following appeals from their families, Assistant Foreign Minister for Consular Affairs Amr Mahmoud Abbas stated in a statement.
In February, Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shukri called Eritrean counterpart Osman Saleh, asking him to release the fishermen as soon as possible.
In recent years, Egyptian fishermen have been arrested in the territorial waters of neighboring countries such as Sudan, Libya and Tunisia. Cairo has repeatedly intervened in these issues to ensure the release of fishermen and warned citizens not to enter foreign waters.
